James Douglas
Theoretical Quantum-Nano Photonics group, ICFO
Trapping cold atoms near a photonic crystal enables the formation of a novel quantum material where atomic spin degrees of freedom, motion and photons strongly couple over large distances. In this system, an atom trapped near the photonic crystal seeds a localized, tunable cavity mode around the atomic position. This effective cavity facilitates interactions with other atoms within the cavity length that are highly tunable and robust under realistic imperfections.
These long range atom-atom interactions can also lead to interactions between photons propagating through the cold atomic media. We show how these interactions can be designed to support molecular-like bound states of photons.